velvet-ant

Velvet Ants are a family of more than 3,000 species of wasps (despite the names) whose wingless females resemble large, hairy ants. Their common name velvet ant refers to their dense pile of hair which most often is bright scarlet or orange, but may also be black, white, silver, or gold. Black and white specimens are sometimes known as panda ants due to their hair coloration resembling that of the Chinese giant panda. Their bite is told to be awfully painful.

Also known as Sackeni’s velvet ant, the thistledown velvet ant is a species of velvet ant (Mutiliidae) that is native to the western United States and Mexico. Although D. sackenii is commonly referred to as an ant it is in-fact a ‘wingless’ wasp. Like other velvet wasps only the females of D. sackenii are wingless and can inflict a painful sting if threatened.

Easily mistaken for a colourful ant by appearance and name, this is in fact a wasp of the family Mutillidae. The females are wingless and hence the common name of velvet ant, in conjunction with the thick usually brightly coloured pile of hair many species bear. The male is typically wasp-like in appearance.

Females lay their eggs in the nests of other insects, typically a ground-nesting bee such as a bumblebee or wasp nest. Her young then develop as idiobiont ectoparasitoids, eventually killing their immobile larval/ pupal hosts.

As in all Hymenoptera, only the female is capable of inflicting a sting, but in the case of the Mutillidae, that sting is reputed to be intensely painful. This unenviable feature has earned them the colloquial name of “cow killers” or cow ants.

velvet ants or cow killers despite their name are not ants and actually are a family of wasps. They probably get the name ant due to their lack of wings (males have wings but look completely different) and appearance (even though ants and wasps are related), they get the name velvet from their dense and bright colored hair. They are also known for their extremely painful stings which is where the name cow killer comes from. although they usually feed on nectar after a female mates with a male she will infiltrate another insect nest and lay here eggs there, the young will develop as ectoparasites and kill their hosts after a matter of time. Velvet ants can be found worldwide but are most common in North America and parts of Central america.

This is a phenomenal family of wasps. The first impression from this image is predator and prey but in fact it is the larger winged male grasping the smaller wingless female in its jaws in the mating process. The size disparity is reversed from the traditional gender difference amongst insects and spiders.

They are wasps and not ants as the name implies. The common name comes from the females resemblance to an ant (wingless) and the thick usually brightly colored pile of hair many species bear.

The male locates a female on the wing and mates. The female then enters an insect nest, typically a ground-nesting bee such as a bumblebee or wasp nest, and deposits one egg near each larva or pupa. Her young then develop as idiobiont ectoparasitoids, eventually killing their immobile larval/pupal hosts within a matter of days.

As in all Hymenoptera, only the female is capable of inflicting an extremely painful sting, said to be strong enough to kill a cow, hence the common name cow killer or cow ant is applied to some species. (HILARIOUS)

…is a species of velvet ant (Mutillidae) that is native to western North America. Although it is called a “velvet ant” and looks superficially similar to an ant D. aureola is actually a species of wingless wasp. Like other velvet ants only the females are wingless, male D. aureola have wings. Females are also capable of inflicting a very painful sting. Like other members of mutillidae D. aureola is likely an ectoparasitoid of bees and solitary wasps.

*squeals* new baby!
She was supposed to be for my collection for class (preserving and displaying), she wasn’t supposed to be alive. But she is and I can’t kill her. Her name is Bonnie and she is mine now.

She’s a pretty little thing in the order Hymenoptera, along with wasps, bees, and ants. Bonnie here, while commonly called a velvet ant, is not an ant, she is actually a wasp.

You know she’s female because she doesn’t have wings, whereas the males do, and only the females sting, since they possess the ovipositor (which is also used to lay eggs) to do so.

They’re a parasitoid, meaning Bonnie here would lay her eggs on a host, however, lacking a host and a male, she probably won’t end up multiplying (probably).

Commonly known as the Red Velvet Ant, or Eastern Velvet Ant, despite the fact that they are actually wasps… and this female is in fact a wing-less wasp, hence the common name as an Ant… just to clarify for all the people calling out in the notes… ;)

…a species of ground sac spider (Corinnidae) that is native to eastern and central North America. Some authorities hypothesize that C. ameone’s striking orange coloration is a mimic of the coloration of the stinging velvet ants (Mutillidae).